Here is a link to San Diego Superior Court where you can see a doctor's history of lawsuits:
Party Name Search
The ones labelled "MM" are medical malpractice, in addition to the 2002/03 cases. The one from 10/11 has been dismissed per court records, but if you compare him to other well known surgeons in San Diego (Lee, Batra, Karam, etc.) he has been sued significantly more often.
Does that mean he is not a good surgeon? Of course not, it could also mean his patients have unrealistic expectations, he may accept patients that others say no to, or it could be a combination of many factors. Regardless, it is an indirect litmus test of a surgeon's practice and enough to steer me away from him.